hypothetical, if I swim in a lake, and a flash goes in a sailboat, is it dangerous for me?

and the second one,
If I stand next to a building holding the lightning rod, and a flash goes into the building, am I in danger?

I would ask my physics teacher, but during holidays, thats not so easy. ^^

Bikerman

Your question is very unclear. I presume you mean a 'lightning strike' when you say 'flash'?
If you are swimming and a nearby boat is struck then it is unlikely that you would be hurt.
If you hold a lightning conductor as it is struck then you might well get hurt. The current tries to get to ground by the easiest route and since the conductor will be metal then it will take that route. However, you represent another route to ground (through your hand, body and feet) and, although this path has a much higher resistance, we are talking about a very BIG currents (typically 30,000 amps or so) so I wouldn't want to be anywhere close to the conductor. At best you would probably burn your hand; at worst you could fry......

Jaan

i think so. if its a metal boat it will conduct water. if its not metal, you'll live. most small boats are non metal but have some metal parts like the propeller.... so you could be safe or not... either way i wouldnt be the one to test it ! xD

chatrack

When you are in water, it is more safer.

becouse, when you are in water, you are a part of it - just like other fish or other living things
in water.

In other case, the lighting device will attract those lighting flash to you, since it has
pointed regions.

Dennise

It's all about voltage differences across different parts of your body.

For example, say that you are standing on the ground and touching or holding a piece of solidly grounded metal or wire, and thinking you are safe because the the metal/wire is 'grounded'.

Now if a lightening strike discharges a cloud through that metal/wire the electrical current can be extremely high .... maybe thousands of amperes. Now even a solid ground wire has some resistance and that resistance can create enough of a voltage difference between the part of your body touching the metal/wire and your feet standing on the earth. Result ........ you're fried.

The same thing can happen when a strike discharges through a tree and you are touching the tree somewhere. In this case it's even worse because the tree's resistance is much higher than a wire and so the voltage difference across your body is much higher.